Mayor Celso Lobregat together with other city and education officials yesterday inaugurated the newly constructed two-storey building with 24 classrooms worth P23.3 million at Don Gregorio Evangelista Memorial School (Don GEMS) in Barangay Sta. Catalina, this city.

With the new building, the school’s student-classroom ratio is expected to go down from 60 students per room to 40 students every classroom, thus giving the school’s 3,584 student-population an environment that is conducive to learning.

In his message, Lobregat said Sta. Catalina is one of the barangays that received the biggest budget in terms of infrastructure projects from the city government under his administration. As of this date, Sta. Catalina received a total of P78,376,751.79 worth of projects.

Record from the City Engineer’s Office showed that in 2007 alone the barangay received P9.3 million worth of projects, mostly concreting of roads, drainage system, slope protection and repair of school building at Don GEMS.

He emphasized that his administration for the last nine years had prioritized education, having constructed 977 classrooms that benefitted 50,000 students in the public elementary and secondary schools all over the city.

In 2008, the barangay had P2.006 million worth of projects; P10.6 million in 2009; P7.5 million in 2010; P6.5 million in 2011 that included the construction of a fire station in the amount of P1.9 million and improvement of health center amounting to P1.8 million.

In 2012, the city government had implemented P2.9 million worth of projects, including road concreting, improvement and rehabilitation of streetlights, and P38.9 million in 2013 that included the two-storey 24-classroom building amounting to P23,322,526.43 unveiled yesterday.

Upcoming projects to be turnover include the waterways worth P8.5 million and drainage system in the amount of P5.6 million.

As this developed, the chief executive has ordered a special Brigada Eskwela at Don GEMS this week to clean up the grounds fronting the new building, which need filling materials to prevent it from being flooded during rainy season.

He has instructed the City Engineer’s Office and the City Environment and Natural Resources to help the school provided with filling materials. The Zamboanga City Water District and the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative were also instructed to provide the new building with water and electric connections.